Genesis 20: 17-18 « Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18 for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah. »
Genesis 18: 32-33 « Then
he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if
only ten can be found there?” He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not
destroy it.” When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and
Abraham returned home ».
During the month of October, I had the opportunity to hear
Apostle Éric Kaloyi preach on the topic of loving one’s neighbour. He presented
Abraham as not only the father of faith, but also a model of neighbourly love.
He referred to the episode in Abraham’s life when he interceded on behalf of a
man who had taken his wife, Sarah, captive. Despite not yet having children
himself, Abraham prayed that God would grant this man children. After this
prayer, the Bible tells us that not only was Abimelech’s wife able to bear
children, but so were all the other women in his household. Abraham’s prayer
was so sincere that it was not only Abimelech who received God’s blessing, but
all those close to him who lived under his roof.
After that sermon, I began to see Abraham’s character in a
different light and to appreciate him more.
I realised that God had chosen Abraham because of his heart: a heart
capable of loving even in the face of injustice; a heart capable of interceding
for others without expecting anything in return, just to see them happy; a
heart that loves God even when the promise seems delayed; a heart that is
submissive to God even when everything seems to be falling apart; a heart that
cannot be tainted by jealousy, even in the midst of poverty. I realized that
God has valued this kind of heart since the Old Testament. This hasn’t changed
in the New Testament, where Jesus tells us this: « Love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and
with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There
is no commandment greater than these. » (Mark 12 : 30-31).
God seeks this kind of heart because He cares deeply about
transmitting the graces He bestows and maintaining the covenants He establishes
with humankind. When He establishes a covenant, He does not do so for just one
person or for a specific time. Rather, He establishes it with all future
generations through one individual. That person must love God, submit to Him
and love others enough to pass on His instructions and share His blessings so
that they may prosper and be as happy as—or happier than—they are. Everything
God gives to a person has only one purpose: to serve others.
1 Peter 4: 10 « Each
of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful
stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. »
No one has the gift of healing just to lay hands on themselves, nor the gift of prophecy just for their own life. All gifts are placed within us for the same purpose: to serve others. In this sense, they can only be given to those who care about the well-being of others—whether they are good or evil, regardless of their race, religion, physical appearance, and so on. God seeks those who can intercede on behalf of others for things they themselves do not have, without jealousy, such as praying for the stability of another’s marriage when one is not married themselves or praying for another to have children when one may be infertile.
Whoever has at heart God’s interests and the well-being of his neighbour—God Himself, in turn, watches over his/her interests.
Genesis 20: 1-3 « Now
Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between
Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of
his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah
and took her. But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him,
“You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married
woman.” »
Matthew 1: 20 « But
after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream
and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your
wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. »
